#and then mordremoth happened and it kinda broke you a little bit?

[guardian-instincts-bad]

wilty boy (wip)

sometimes letting your sylvari commanders run around tyria when they're only a few months old leads to them making poor choices like alienating their best friend, joining not one but two villainous organisations while trying to save the world, getting stabbed in the back multiple times, once with rotsap, and contracting a chronic illness from it before they actually become commander

(his hair used to be blue)

(it will get there again but it takes a couple years)

[rosewoodroad]

Hmm... For the Commander asks, how about 1, 7, and 15 if anybody else hasn't sent them yet.

Thanks for asking!! This was fun to explore. Maybe too much fun because this turned out much longer than I intended.

1. Which dragon scared your commander the most?

Kralkatorrik. To LS4 Wysma, the Crystal Dragon was the embodiment of all his mistakes, his arrogance to dare assume the Elder Dragons were nothing more than rabid beasts, and that he could beat them all. Mordremoth had been his wake up call, and LS3 taught Wysma that Zhaitan's defeat had only served to create a disastrous domino effect, but to see the sheer destruction Kralkatorrik had been capable of? It almost felt like it was his fault it happened, no matter how much he told himself he could do it- what's one more Dragon?

Then Aurene died, and he broke.

He’s since gotten over his guilt about the whole mess (and Aurene's alive! Whew). He understands now that it was nobody’s fault that he, the Pact, even Trahearne didn’t have the full picture until it was too late. Accusations that he was inadequate still sting, though.

(Jormag is a close second; while Kralkatorrik made Wysma feel responsible, Icebrood Saga felt like things were truly and entirely out of his control no matter what he did. He doesn’t know which is worse- to be guilty, or to be helpless.)

7. How does your commander feel toward their position of power?

Currently? He's a little dismissive of it. Avoidant, even. He knows he’s influential, that he is (was?) a beacon of light for many. But subconsciously, he's trying to distance himself from the persona of The Commander after the stress of it bubbled over during the Gyala Delves incident. It's why he accepted the title of Wayfinder so easily.

At first, 'the' 'Commander' was an honour. Then it became a position he rightfully earned, critics be damned. Then it started feeling like a performance he was putting on for the sake of himself, then for others. Then the ‘Commander’ kind of took on its own life and Wysma was left in his own shadow. But with the Commander’s irrelevance (as Wysma sees it) after the Elder Dragons were defeated, being just Wysma felt... empty. So he tries to be useful in ways he knows he’s good at (like punching things really hard) but without being ‘The Commander’ despite knowing the influence, the honour, the blood and war and scent of death it carries.

Wysma’s wrong, of course. He is always will be a bleeding heart of a hero. His itch for adventure and sense of justice will prevail, his pride will heal, and if you asked if he could turn back time and never become the Commander, he would reject you. He will eventually recognise that it's all always been him, but for now, it's a bit of an uphill struggle!

15. How has your commander changed overtime?

He's changed quite a bit! Wysma's entire story is just a big humbling moment for him as he grows into his role as Commander, then Champion.

Initially, he was a dorky, kinda timid kid who broke out of his shell to try to become a Peacemaker, then joined the Vigil and the Pact, and then Zhaitan is dead.

His was at his most cocky post-Personal Story through LS2, where he felt invincible —until HoT served him a bad dose of reality. By LS3, despite his attempts to maintain control (or maintain denial), Balthazar forced him to confront the true weight of his role as Commander. He fails, Tyria is dead.

Humbled (and more than a little stressed out), he was at his lowest in LS4, wrestling with doubts and guilt over everything in the past. He had a moment of reprieve once Aurene ascended, but then he was invited to a Charr party and then things were chaos again. He was genuinely frustrated with the public dissent against Aurene and Aurene herself for her inaction. But, in the end, seeing the chaos Ryland wrought as Champion... Wysma became a bit more understanding, more patient with his and Aurene’s role in the balance of power.

Now, Wysma is wiser, but still lost. His pride is subdued, but it's there. He does feel that 'The Commander' is a bit redundant but loathes feeling useless, so he’s resolved to step back from Commander-y things for his mental health... as he joins a secretive wizard task force and transports himself into a demon realm to fistfight a demon king.